


Friendly Kisses

by Aldrig



Category: Bob Dylan (Musician), George Harrison (Musician), The Beatles (Band), The Travelling Wilburys (Band)
Genre: 5+1 Things, But also, Cute, Fluff, How Do I Tag This, Hurt/Comfort, Kissing, M/M, Singing, Wholesome, but happy after the ending that's for sure, dylarrison, finally not an AU, happy george, i tried to make this as accurate as possible, playing guitars, references to real life events, sad George, shy bob, sometimes, there are some more serious themes I guess, with the addition of fictional romance of course
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-03
Updated: 2018-12-03
Packaged: 2019-09-06 11:32:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,667
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16831783
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aldrig/pseuds/Aldrig
Summary: A story following the 5 times their kisses were platonic and 1 time they weren't.





	Friendly Kisses

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Summertime_Poet](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Summertime_Poet/gifts), [bablevees](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bablevees/gifts).



_1\. 1962_

The first time it happened, he didn't even realize it. It was in the so-called early Beatles days, around the year of 62' to be a bit more precise, when George Harrison bought a record by someone called Bob Dylan. It had a photo of the author on the cover, almost expressionless saved for the slightly raised eyebrows. It was just a very young man, wearing a hat and a cozy brown jacket, he could be a few years older than George, but he couldn't really tell based on the picture alone. He listened to the music one late evening when he actually had a bit of time to himself between the busy life of a starting rockstar.  
Of course, he wasn't expecting to enjoy what he heard from the record player as much as he did. The voice, the sound, the lyrics, everything fell together into place as he practically fell in love with the music. It was something George has never heard before, something special. He climbed off of the bed he had been lying on and crawled to the sound of 'Song to Woody' coming from the record player. George quickly took the cover in his hands and that's when he couldn't help but excitedly kiss the paper case of the record, not knowing how else to express his appreciation of this masterfully crafted piece of work, in that ungodly night hour.  
He also just didn't know that this was only the first time, even though it wasn't direct, out of several times in his life when he'd kiss this man.

_2\. 1968_

When it happened for the second time, they actually knew each other already, both of them being well established and admired musicians. They had met for the first time a few years prior to this particular visit, with the other Beatles present as well.  
This time it was only the two of them, apart from their families. George wanted to see his friend, spend the Thanksgiving with him and to perhaps encourage him a little bit, to ease his mind. It was just around two years after the crash; Bob was still metaphorically and almost literally hiding behind a locked door, not wanting to be in the public eye and of course not wanting to perform at any live concerts.  
With George's arrival, Bob was as expected, reluctant at first. Shy almost. George didn't blame him, he couldn't even imagine how Bob must have felt, how difficult it must have been to get over such a traumatic experience and trying to live his life again. He just wished he could help him somehow. After the first initial awkwardness, Bob asked George to teach him some new chords, so of course he was more than happy to do that for him.  
Soon the uncertainty of the first few days was forgotten, as they lost themselves in the sweet sounds of their guitars and eventually voices. An unique bond was forming between them and they both could feel it. Suddenly, all these chord patterns started to resemble a song. So George's response to that was to come up with starting words to sing, and not long after that, Bob came up with the chorus. The song was a conversation between them and to any other listener besides them, it could be easily interpreted as a love song. In a way, it really was. They continued to play and harmonize like that until a late evening hour, completely ignoring the world around them, finding themselves in their own bubble.  
This stay at Bob's house turned out to be a very extraordinary occasion for the both of them. Not only did they influence each other musically, but emotionally as well. As they were saying their goodbyes, several days later, and embraced each other in a tender hug, Bob whispered almost inaudibly a short, but genuine thanks. He could have sworn he felt George's smiling and soft lips brushing against his cheek in a manner, which couldn't be described as anything else but a kiss.

_3\. 1971_

It was a thrilling moment for the both of them. Well, all of them, everyone who was a part of this occasion, that would later become an important milestone in history and an inspiration for many other musicians in the years to come.  
It was a mess, people were running around, already celebrating with alcohol and other substances of their choosing, laughing at the top of their lungs, crying from the overwhelming bursts of emotion and embracing each other in heated hugs.  
Bob was one of them, not remembering when was the last time he felt genuinely this happy and full of energy. The adrenaline was practically overflowing his body and he just had to let George know how much he loved doing this. How it made him feel, after so many years spent in loneliness and fear. So he kept looking for him, in the mass of bodies that huddled in the small space behind the stage. He didn't have a plan for what he wanted to do, he just trusted himself to know at the right time.  
After a while, Bob finally saw him still in that white suit, smiling one of his usual bright smiles, visibly shaking still not believing what just happened and just what they had achieved. Rushing to him, he didn't think twice before lifting him off the ground and matching the same smile, that faltered for a bit from the surprise of being in the air suddenly. He yelled too loudly, trying to be heard over the crowd, how he just wished they'd done three shows. All that wasn't enough though as he felt a strong impulse to kiss his friend hastily on the forehead, when he brought him back down. The hands that were still on his shoulders tightened. Bob couldn't care less about George's sweat on his lips that was now mixed with his own, everyone was sweating at this point, as one does after a show of this capacity, tied with a bit of euphoria that all of them felt.  
Not shortly after their exchange of affection, their colleagues started hugging them and cheering, continuing to celebrate. But for now, they kept their eyes to each other as their cheeks started to hurt.

_4\. 1974_

At the lowest point of his life so far, with the tour not being received well at all and the divorce from Pattie, George found himself wanting to spend the days with Bob again. He'd been in a really bad state, taking some nasty stuff that made his voice give up almost completely and forget about what was important in his life. Bob was one of the only people, if not the only one, who could make him feel better talking about his otherworldy wisdoms, that just came to him so naturally and easily. They met somewhere in Los Angeles or Malibu, George couldn't recall the exact place. Bob took him in, didn't question anything and allowed him to simply be with him, as it was obvious he needed all the support he could get. It was what friends would do for each other, and Bob did consider George a very close friend of his, since the several visits and gifts he received from George in the past years and since the concert for Bangladesh, so this could be just the chance to reciprocate the emotional encouragement.  
The comfort George was receiving from Bob was helping him for the time being. He even let himself be vulnerable and emotional, he trusted Bob to understand and he knew Bob didn't care about the way he expressed his emotions like this. And so at one point between their conversations, when they just sat next to each other holding half-empty beer bottles, Bob decided to put his arm around George's slender shoulders in a comforting manner and lean in to kiss the part of George's face that was closest to him, which happened to be his right temple. It didn't mean anything complicated, it was just another way of showing his friend that he was with him and that he supported him, without saying any more words. Right away, he was met with an expression of gratitude combined with sadness, lacking the usual wit and depth, that could draw in everyone who'd look into those eyes. It wouldn't be George if he didn't try to smile through tears, and it ended up being the most heartbroken smile Bob had seen his friend make. That made him hold George even tighter.

_5\. 1988_

The fifth one happened again in a room full of people, but thankfully, people who didn't care about two guys randomly kissing each other anyway. Especially when it came to Bob and George. There was always something about their friendship that the others couldn't fully understand or relate to in the same extend. It was the way they worked together. How they could just look at each other without saying a word and know exactly what the other meant, leaving their Wilbury bandmates clueless. They were just very good friends, who had known each other for over twenty years now and they had already come a long way to get to this point, to be so comfortable in each other's presence.  
So it wasn't surprising at all when one of those long days which they spent writing and recording the songs, George casually leaned in from where he stood behind Bob, and kissed him very briefly on top of his curls, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. To them, it probably was.  
This time the action was the result of Bob coming up with something that George considered to be brilliant, as he always did. That led to Bob smiling one of his coy smiles, while he continued to work on the paper laid in front of him, on the song they'd been discussing up until this point. 

_+1_

The last one was not like the previous ones. After they finished one of the songs that would later become a part of their first group's album, they stayed in the house, just hanging out. The band they had formed together was more like a group of friends or family even, having fun with each other in the very relaxed environment of their own homes. So it was only natural that sometimes they didn't even leave the place for the night and stayed in the guest rooms, if their other responsibilities allowed it. It was much easier than to travel to some hotel or their respective houses, that late and in the slightly tipsy states they happened to be in sometimes.  
This time it was a bit different though, not because the last ones who'd stayed up after midnight to talk were Bob and George, but because of the occurrences that followed.  
At first, they'd been inside, talking with no intention of stopping anytime soon, mainly because it was one of Bob's last days with the guys before he had to leave and go on tour. When they felt the room getting too stuffy, they decided to go outside on the porch, which was covered in darkness, saved for the one weak light hung close above them, and the moon on the night sky, that was slowly but surely changing into dawn.  
"Y'know, when I first saw your face on a record and heard your songs, I never expected to actually be with you in one band years later and do stuff like this." George commented with his arms gesturing around them, after several minutes of silence in which they had just stood there and stared at the view in front of them. He said it with his typical tone of voice that he used when he was telling something funny. Bob didn't know what to say to that, he never did in those situations, when George just complimented him like he was some kind of amazing being that blessed the Earth. Instead he just smiled slowly and thought about all the times they both helped each other in different periods of their lives and how surreal it was to realize they have been doing this for so long, because in the end Bob admired George just the same and couldn't believe he was here with him now either, after all they had lived through.  
George was simply one of the few people that could make him feel so strongly and so intensely about a friend. Actually, at this point, the word friends didn't feel like it was enough to describe their relationship. They really loved each other. But friends do love each other, though, don't they?  
"I really love you, you know that?" Bob repeated the words that had been occupying his mind for a very long time now. A raspy laugh was the reply to that, which made him smile even more. He didn't feel awkward saying that, it was just a simple fact.  
"Well, I guess after all these years, you know that I really love you too, right?" For some reason, he wasn't sure they were still talking about the healthy friendship love that they always considered to be in, or if this was getting deeper every second that was spent in silence. Another few moments passed before Bob wanted to confirm his suspicion and started to close the distance between them. George expected just another one of their harmless kisses on a cheek or something similar, that they shared a few times before, but was surprised when Bob's lips missed his cheek and went straight onto his own mouth. They stayed like this for a while, trying to recover from that sudden action, before they actually opened their mouths and started kissing in a completely different way than they ever done before. It felt so natural and normal, as if this was the thing they were supposed to do long ago already and they just tried to catch up with all of that in one kiss. They broke away and George lowered his hand from the back of Bob's head, that neither of them remembered when it got there, and they just looked at each other not knowing what to say. Was this it? Did they just accidentally kiss each other like some kind of lovers? Was it a mistake?  
"Uhhh.... I guess this wasn't a friendly, definitely not romantic, kiss, was it?"  
"I guess not... George, look- I'm sorry." Bob said, realizing what he'd done, screaming a bit internally, as the reality started to catch up with him.  
He wanted to explain himself, to say that he had misunderstood all those signs that he had chosen to ignore since '68, but he didn't get the chance to, because George just kissed him again, moving closer to him. They didn't have to say anything again, because now he was sure of what both of them felt. He reciprocated and placed his hands on George's neck, holding onto him, not wanting this moment to stop.  
In a way, he regretted that they haven't done this sooner, but maybe it had been important for their relationship to grow slowly and to develop to this point, when they were mature enough to accept it as it was. The most important thing was that they had realized it at last. That sometimes a friendship is just too close to a romantic love. Of course, he was sure that they would have been just fine being best friends for the rest of their lives, if this night hadn’t happened. All it had taken was five platonic kisses and one not as platonic.  
Which was the last thing Bob thought before they both had to stop anyway to breathe for a while and with that, they immediately bursted into laughter, alone, on that porch in the middle of the night, silently promising each other that this wasn't their last time. 

**Author's Note:**

> Yay! Would you look at that? My third ever fanfiction, and it is again about the same relationship as my other two (and I don't think I'll be writing anything else any time soon)
> 
> A huge thanks goes to [Summertime_Poet](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Summertime_Poet/pseuds/Summertime_Poet) , who not only inspired me to write this, but beta read this whole mess and fixed my mistakes :D She also came up with a title :). I love you a lot and I can't thank you enough <3
> 
> And to everyone who read this and liked it, please consider writing me a comment, even if it's very short, I'd really appreciate that :) Goodbye and see you next time for another dylarrison fanfiction :D


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